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The Senators put it directly to him. Did he knowingly try to put pressure on immigration officers to grant visas for persons he recommended, but who didn't qualify? Here's his extended conversation with Chairman Aldo Salazar, and PUP Senator Eamon Courtenay about that:

Hon. Aldo Salazar - Chairman, Senate Select Committee
"The Auditor General noted that yourself as minister of government made recommendations and requests, according to her, to immigration officers for visas to be issued to specific individuals, including a number of Asians. Did you make these recommendations as well?"

Elvin Penner - Former Immigration Minister
"Yes, I have made recommendations. They were normally, as far as I can recall, addressed and given to the then director or acting director of immigration."

Hon. Aldo Salazar
"Was there any law which allowed you to do so?"

Elvin Penner
"Not to - not that I am aware of."

Hon. Aldo Salazar
"On what basis would you do so - would you give a recommendation?"

Elvin Penner
"Well as the minister responsible for immigration, I thought that to be kind of my duties, because I was responsible for the immigration department. A lot of individuals would come for assistance in a lot of matters regards to immigration."

Hon. Aldo Salazar
"Did you receive any personal benefit, from making the recommendations?"

Elvin Penner
"No."

Hon. Aldo Salazar
"Do you feel that there was any pressure brought to bear on immigration officers to issue visas for those persons who you had recommended?"

Elvin Penner
"Well, it certainly shouldn't have on the immigration officers because, like I said, the request was always directed at the director of immigration. And, as career public officers, they all know their responsibilities, and like I said, I have never asked for any special privilege to be granted to any one of these applicants. So, I don't see why."

Hon. Aldo Salazar
"Who would you recommend for?"

Elvin Penner
"All the persons that have come to me for recommendations would normally be individuals that I know very well, either out of my constituency, for business persons that I know well that were inviting either family members, friends, or business people to come and visit Belize."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay - PUP Senator
"I am trying to understand why is it that a person would come to you with a complete application. Yes? Complete."

Elvin Penner
"Yes."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"And you would write a recommendation letter for that person, when in fact that person already qualifies."

Elvin Penner
"Well I simply would make a recommendation based upon the requests of such persons."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"Why? Why would you not say to the person, 'You have qualified; there is no need for me to do anything?'"

Elvin Penner
"Well, like I said before, as the minister of immigration, I felt that there were certain expectations of me, not only by the immigration department, but also by the public. And I did whatever I did, in my view, to best serve the public at large."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"And, is it correct to say that you understood one of your duties or responsibilities to be facilitate the processing of visa applications?"

Elvin Penner
"That was not one of my responsibilities."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"That was not one of your responsibilities. Well, tell me what responsibility or duty it is that you were doing, as a minister of immigration, when you wrote recommending persons for visas who had already qualified for visas. What duty were you performing?"

Elvin Penner
"I was simply responding to the requests of individuals that I knew very well, that they perhaps thought that a recommendation from myself, as the minister of immigration, would assist them in getting that visa for whatever reason or the other, and [I] therefore responded to their requests."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"So, at the time when you wrote these requests, you were aware that the persons who were asking you were of the view that with a recommendation from you, it would influence the application."

Elvin Penner
"I don't know what their view was.."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"Well, you were the one who gave the evidence just now."

Elvin Penner
"I said that is what I believe that they felt."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"So, you are of the view that when they came to you that they were under the impression that a recommendation from you would assist. That was what you felt."

Elvin Penner
"Yes."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"Did you correct them, or did you leave them with that impression?"

Elvin Penner
"I don't remember correcting them. Like I said, iI would just give them the recommendation that they asked me for."

Hon. Eamon Eamon Courtenay
"So, it's correct to say that you knowingly made these recommendations, when you believed that the persons asking you for your assistance were of the view that your recommendation would influence the outcome, and you did not correct them."

Elvin Penner
"I don't know that for a fact but that is my belief."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"Did you look at the applications?"

Elvin Penner
"No, I normally would not look at the applications. I just simply knew the persons that would come to me for the recommendation, and I would simply write a letter on behalf of the person in a way sponsoring them, or inviting them."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"You are telling this committee that you, Elvin Penner, wrote recommendations for persons to be granted visas who did not qualify."

Elvin Penner
"I did never knowingly recommend anybody to get a visa that did not qualify."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"But, you did not check."

Elvin Penner
"No, I did not check."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"Why then were you making these completely ineffective recommendations, that did absolutely nothing, were not influential? They were of no use. Why did you hundreds of times do it?"

Elvin Penner
"Have you indeed check that there indeed were hundreds of times that those recommendations were made?"

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"Happily for you, and for me, I am the one who ask the questions. You answer. Why is it that you hundreds of times wrote paperless recommendations, since the had absolutely no effect? Why did you do that?"

Elvin Penner
"Well, I don't think I am obligated to answer that question if you are referring to the hundreds of times, because I it was not hundreds of times that happen."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"Mr. Penner, use 1. Why did you write one recommendation, 2 recommendations - any number that you want - that were totally of no use? Why did you write them?"

Elvin Penner
"Because it was the request of individuals that I knew. They made that request of me, and I gave it to them because I wanted to assist them."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"You told them that it was valueless and useless?"

Elvin Penner
"I have never discussed that matter them."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"So, they came to you seeking help. You knew that the paper that you were going to write was of no value, but you did it."

Elvin Penner
"I should not have influenced any officer or the director to have granted or not granted the visa."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"But, But?"

Elvin Penner
"But what?"

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"But it did -"

Elvin Penner
"I-"

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"And that's why you wrote it."

Elvin Penner
"I don't know that for a fact. In all of my recommendations I can recall, the recommendation letter would state at the end specifically that the visas are requested, but should be granted only if all the requirements of that applications are met."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"You knew that when you were preparing these recommendations and sending them, that they would influence the processing of those applications. You very well knew that."

Elvin Penner
"Like I told you before, that is only an assumption that I can make but they should not have."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"I understand that, but you knew. You made that assumption - if you want to use your word - that you will make this recommendation, and you know that immigration officers will look at it, 'Bwai, this is the minister's one, let me see...' And they try to fast track it or approve."

Elvin Penner
"They shouldn't have done so."

Hon. Eamon Courtenay
"I am asking you about your conduct. They came and they faced their questions, your turn now. You were doing it because you knew that they would rely on the fact that the Minister is asking for it to be approved. Isn't that true?"

Elvin Penner
"Like I told you before, I did it on behalf of the individuals who asked for that recommendations of me. And I wanted to do my best to represent the people of Belize, and therefore, I wrote those recommendations."